COSH! Conscious Shopping Made Easy

The message of the project

The fashion industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world. If all stakeholders work together, we can create a paradigm shift and there will only be ethical employment in a circular economy. COSH!, believes that by helping consumers vote with their wallets, it accelerates the transition to a sustainable and slavery-free fashion industry.

COSH! Makes a difference by connecting supply chain data from fashion brands to high street retail and guiding citizens towards local conscious shopping choices. Retailers and cities are united in a trusted platform through a commons principle, where retailers pay memberships for the sustainability screening of their brands.COSH! has a brand and shop index, which independently analyses supply chains for ethics, sustainability and circular economy. This big data is used to make conscious shopping easy for consumers. At the same time, valuable insights for cities on the current status of circular textiles in the city's retail landscape are gathered.

The idea behind the project

COSH! empowers consumers, brands, and retailers in cities to transition from a polluting fashion industry to an eco-friendly, circular, and ethical one. In a world where small, local sustainable businesses and fashion entrepreneurs are often overshadowed by large fashion retailers with false sustainability claims, COSH! is not just a 'nice-to-have' but a true necessity.

Niki de Schryver founded COSH! after working in the luxury fashion industry for 18 years. During her time in the sector, she realized her desire to instigate change from within. She understood that she could help thousands with her experience and skills rather than just creating one label. To combat climate change and the exploitation of people in the fashion industry, she wanted to use her expertise for the greater good, establishing the sustainable fashion platform COSH!. She envisioned it as 'the Google or Pokémon Go for sustainable fashion.' In addition to guiding consumers, the platform also supports brands and stores by increasing awareness through marketing activities and provides cities with actionable insights into their retail circularity status. Thanks to COSH!, over 1 million consumers have already been directed toward more sustainable shopping choices, and more than 600 local retailers and fashion entrepreneurs have received support. Furthermore, it is regarded as a trustworthy and substantial source, thanks to the newly released index that assesses brands across seven impact categories.

What next?

Within the next 5-10 years, only sustainable and fair trade fashion will remain. COSH! is accelerating the transition to a circular and slavery-free economy by simplifying conscious shopping for consumers while increasing visibility for local, more sustainable entrepreneurs. Leveraging the local circular ecosystem will contribute to cities achieving their carbon-free ambitions by 2050.

The next projects on COSH!'s roadmap, following the successful launch of the screenmystore and screenmybrand tools and indexes in spring 2023, include the development of a consumer-facing app to measure changes in consumer behavior. Additionally, COSH! is working on creating Smart City Dashboards for cities to monitor and influence policies aligned with the EU Green Deal. Furthermore, preparations are underway to connect and curate data from Digital Product Passports.